Indian Consumers\u27 Brand Equity Toward a US and Local Apparel Brand

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine effects of gender, need for uniqueness, and attitudes toward American products on dimensions of brand equity for a US and local apparel brand in the Indian market. Design/methodology/approach: Three dimensions of brand equity are evaluated based on the respondents\u27 shopping experience related to the selected US and local apparel brands. Data are collected from a convenience sample of college students in India. Findings: The empirical tests show that, for a US apparel brand, there are direct and indirect effects of Indian consumers\u27 gender, need for uniqueness (NFU), and attitudes toward American products on three dimensions of brand equity: perceived quality, brand loyalty, and brand associations with brand awareness. For local apparel brands, these effects are found for only one brand equity dimension: perceived quality. Research limitations/implications: The study uses only one US apparel brand, which may limit the generalization of the findings to all product categories and countries. Practical implications: US marketers need to improve Indian consumers\u27 attitudes toward American products through marketing and promotional campaigns. On the other hand, Indian marketers should overcome the negative relationship between Indian consumers\u27 attitudes toward American products and their quality perception toward a local apparel brand. Originality/value: Little attention has been given to individual differences in evaluating the three dimensions of brand equity. By assessing brand equity based on the individual characteristics of gender, need for uniqueness, and attitudes toward American products, results of the study can help marketers to obtain more specific knowledge of brand equity about a target consumer group and thus enable them to plan and implement well-suited strategies for improving their brand equity

ZnO:B back reflector with high haze and low absorption enhanced triple-junction thin film Si solar modules

AbstractWe present our development of a ZnO:B back reflector (BR) with high haze and low absorption for highly efficient triple-junction thin film Si solar modules over a large area (1.1×1.3m2). We try to maximize light trapping by the evaluation of the use of transparent conducting oxide (TCO) and BR for high efficiency. It was verified that the configuration of SnO2:F front TCO and ZnO:B BR shows better optical properties than typical configurations for light trapping due to its high transparency at the front and high haze at the back. In addition, we noticed that the absorption of the BR has a strong influence on the solar modules. We obtained a superior ZnO:B BR with high haze and low absorption by controlling the doping gas ratio (B2H6/DEZ). As the doping gas ratio of ZnO:B BR decreases, the haze increases due to a rougher surface morphology, and the absorption decreases due to reduced free carrier absorption. The solar modules with a ZnO:B BR in a lower doping gas ratio show relatively higher Pmax for the same i-μc-Si layer thickness. This results from an increased Isc due to higher haze and lower absorption. In addition, the ZnO:B BR with a low doping gas ratio was found to be effective in reducing the i-μc-Si layer thickness because there are more chances for trapping the light at the i-μc-Si layer. We could reduce the i-μc-Si layer thickness by about 28% for the equivalent Pmax level by lowering the doping gas ratio. We successfully applied the ZnO:B BR with high haze and low absorption into a triple-junction thin film silicon solar cell and achieved a new record, improving on our previous world record

Endogenous metabolic markers for predicting the activity of dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase

Five-fluorouracil (5-FU) is a chemotherapeutic agent that is mainly metabolized by the rate-limiting enzyme dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD). The DPD enzyme activity deficiency involves a wide range of severities. Previous studies have demonstrated the effect of a DPYD single nucleotide polymorphism on 5-FU efficacy and highlighted the importance of studying such genes for cancer treatment. Common polymorphisms of DPYD in European ancestry populations are less frequently present in Koreans. DPD is also responsible for the conversion of endogenous uracil (U) into dihydrouracil (DHU). We quantified U and DHU in plasma samples of healthy male Korean subjects, and samples were classified into two groups based on DHU/U ratio. The calculated DHU/U ratios ranged from 0.52 to 7.12, and the two groups were classified into the 10th percentile and 90th percentile for untargeted metabolomics analysis using liquid chromatography-quantitative time-of-flight-mass spectrometry. A total of 4440 compounds were detected and filtered out based on a coefficient of variation below 30%. Our results revealed that six metabolites differed significantly between the high activity group and low activity group (false discovery rate q-value \u3c 0.05). Uridine was significantly higher in the low DPD activity group and is a precursor of U involved in pyrimidine metabolism; therefore, we speculated that DPD deficiency can influence uridine levels in plasma. Furthermore, the cutoff values for detecting DPD deficient patients from previous studies were unsuitable for Koreans. Our metabolomics approach is the first study that reported the DHU/U ratio distribution in healthy Korean subjects and identified a new biomarker of DPD deficiency

Changes in the gut microbiome influence the hypoglycemic effect of metformin through the altered metabolism of branched-chain and nonessential amino acids

AIMS: Although metformin has been reported to affect the gut microbiome, the mechanism has not been fully determined. We explained the potential underlying mechanisms of metformin through a multiomics approach. METHODS: An open-label and single-arm clinical trial involving 20 healthy Korean was conducted. Serum glucose and insulin concentrations were measured, and stool samples were collected to analyze the microbiome. Untargeted metabolomic profiling of plasma, urine, and stool samples was performed by GC-TOF-MS. Network analysis was applied to infer the mechanism of the hypoglycemic effect of metformin. RESULTS: The relative abundances of Escherichia, Romboutsia, Intestinibacter, and Clostridium were changed by metformin treatment. Additionally, the relative abundances of metabolites, including carbohydrates, amino acids, and fatty acids, were changed. These changes were correlated with energy metabolism, gluconeogenesis, and branched-chain amino acid metabolism, which are major metabolic pathways related to the hypoglycemic effect. CONCLUSIONS: We observed that specific changes in metabolites may affect hypoglycemic effects through both pathways related to AMPK activation and microbial changes. Energy metabolism was mainly related to hypoglycemic effects. In particular, branched-chain amino acid metabolism and gluconeogenesis were related to microbial metabolites. Our results will help uncover the potential underlying mechanisms of metformin through AMPK and the microbiome

Grading system for periodontitis by analyzing levels of periodontal pathogens in saliva

Periodontitis is an infectious disease that is associated with microorganisms that colonize the tooth surface. Clinically, periodontal condition stability reflects dynamic equilibrium between bacterial challenge and host response. Therefore, periodontal pathogen assessment can assist in the early detection of periodontitis. Here we developed a grading system called the periodontal pathogen index (PPI) by analyzing the copy numbers of multiple pathogens both in healthy and chronic periodontitis patients. We collected 170 mouthwash samples (64 periodontally healthy controls and 106 chronic periodontitis patients) and analyzed the salivary 16S rRNA levels of nine pathogens using multiplex, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Except for Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, copy numbers of all pathogens were significantly higher in chronic periodontitis patients. We classified the samples based on optimal cut-off values with maximum sensitivity and specificity from receiver operating characteristic curve analyses (AUC = 0.91, 95% CI: 0.87-0.96) into four categories of PPI: Healthy (1-40), Moderate (41-60), At Risk (61-80), and Severe (81-100). PPI scores were significantly higher in all chronic periodontitis patients than in the controls (odds ratio: 31.7, 95% CI: 13.41-61.61) and were associated with age, scaling as well as clinical characteristics including clinical attachment level and plaque index. Our PPI grading system can be clinically useful for the early assessment of pathogenic bacterial burden and follow-up monitoring after periodontitis treatment